Web-splicing method



y 1939- P. TOLLISON 2,160,526

WEB-SPLICING METHOD Filed Nov. 20, 1936 INVENTOR P401 1,.7044 50ATTORNEY Patented May 30, 1939 PATENT OFFICE WEB-SPLICING METHOD Paul L.Tollison, North Plainfield, N. J., assignor to Wood Newspaper MachineryCorporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Virginia ApplicationNovember 20, 1936,Serial No. 111,793

8 Claims. (Cl. 242-58) My invention relates to the art of splicing websin a web using machine whereby when the web from one web roll nearsexhaustion a web from a fresh roll may be spliced thereon withoutstopping the machine.

This art has been very highly developed in newspaper printing so that itis possible to keep the printing press running continuously at fullspeed as long as desired without having to stop or even slow down thepress to effect a splice.

My invention has for an object to provide certain improvements in theart adapted to insure a more positive adhesion of the fresh web to therunning web, thereby extending the field of suc- .a cessful web splicingbeyond that of newspaper printing.

The usual method of making a quick splice in the web of a newspaperpress comprises the ap plication ofa highly adhesive but substantiallynon-drying glue to the free end of the fresh roll, which free end istemporarily held down upon the roll prior to the splicing operation by afrangible sticker or tab, such, for instance, as that described inUnited States Patent No. 2,039,696.

25 The fresh roll is then rotated and is brought up to a surface speedsubstantially equal to that of the running web. When the running roll isabout to expire the running web and the fresh roll are brought intocontact and the glued end of the 30 fresh web adheres to the running webso firmly as to tear away from the fresh roll to which it is bound bythe tabs. The new web is thus drawn by the running web through thepress, and the old web is in the meantime severed from the expiringroll. The non-drying glue commonly used is made of rosin and oil and hasthe advantage of possessing a high degree of tackiness amply sufiicientto effect an instant adhesion strong enough to tear 40 the tabs apart.However, since the glue is nondrying it remains viscous and hencesemi-fluid or plastic and the splice will gradually yield under a steadytension until the web ends are pulled apart. Thus, the time element isan important factor in any non-drying splice that is subjected totension.

Ordinarily this characteristic of a non-drying splice is not a seriousdisadvantage in newspaper printing because the leads are relativelyshort and the splice although not absolutely fixed it is strong enoughto carry the new web through the press without parting. However, inmagazine presses much longer leads are commonly used and the splicev isnot firm enough to prevent occasional parting, and when the splice givesway the press has to be stopped and re-threaded. This unfavorablecharacteristic of non-drying glue is further aggravated in magazinepresses which employ heat to dry the printed impression, be cause theheat reduces the viscosity of the nondrying glue and reduces thestrength of the splice. A water base glue has the advantage of producinga firmer splice, but such glues have not the tackiness sufiicient toeffect an instant strong adhesion of the webs such as is requisite inmaking a splice while the machine is running at full speed.

, It is -'a more specific object of my invention to combine theadvantages of non-drying and drying glue by using both glues in thesplice. The non-drying glue causes initial adhesion and the other glueas it dries renders the splice firm and permanent. This method providesa reliable splice for magazine presses using long leads, and where thesplice passes over heating drums the drying glue is more quickly dried,thereby enhancing the firmness of the splice. Thus it will be apparentthat the very thing which is instrumental in reducing the viscosity ofthe non-drying glue is instrumental in making the drying glue stick morefirmly. In other words, as one glue becomes weak the other becomesstrong.

With the above-named objects and advantages in view and others whichwill appear hereinafter I shall now describe my invention as applied toa specific embodiment and thereafter the novelty and scope of theinvention will be set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a largely diagrammatic view in side elevation of a magazinepress provided with quick splicing means and to which my invention isparticularly applicable;

Fig. 2 shows a web roll prepared in accordance with my invention showinga line of glue of the drying type adjacent a line of non-drying glue;and

Fig. 3 is a fragmental view in section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2,the thickness of the web and holding tab being greatly exaggerated forpurposes of illustration.

In Figure 1. I show a rotary reel l0 supporting three web rolls ll, l2and I3, respectively. The running web I4 is shown as coming from theroll II. This web is fed into the printing press and passes between animpression cylinder l6 and a plate cylinder l1. Thence the web passesabout a heating drum l8 to dry the ink printed thereon. The web thenproceeds between an impression cylinder 20 and a plate cylinder 2| toreceive a second impression which is dried by passing the web about asecond drying drum 2!. From this drum the web is led over-suitable guiderollers to a folder 24, whence it is delivered in the usual manner.

Fig. 1 shows the roll ll nearly exhausted and the parts in position tomake a splice between the running web and the web of the next successiveroll II. This roll is prepared'for splicing in the manner shown in Figs.2 and 3. The free end of the web is cut substantially to the shape of aninverted W so as to form salient angles or points 25. A frangible tab 26secures each point 25 to the body of the roll. Each tab comprises asingle section 21 glued to the roll and a double section II, 29enclosing the point 25 and glued thereto. The tab is weakened by atransverse line of perforations lll between the sections. Glue of thenon-drying type is applied,

to the free end of the web along the end margin thereof, as indicated inFig. 2, by the stippled band 32. It will be observed that this band ofning web. Any suitable means may be provided for this purpose. In thedrawing, I have shown a propelling device 34- consisting of a set ofendless belts driven at approximately web speed, the belts being broughtinto contact with the roll just before the splice is made. The bands ofglue 32 and 33 are interrupted, as indicated at 35, to clear thepropelling belts. It will be understood that the wet band 33 is appliedjust before the roll is rotated and is adapted to remain in wetcondition until the splice is made.

The parts being now ready for a splice, a running web is pressed againstthe roll by means of a brush '6 and said web on encountering the bandsof glue sticks fast to the web of the fresh roll i2. The adhesionprovided by the non-drying glue is of suflicient strength to tear thetabs along their lines of weakness 30 and thereafter the running web issevered from the roll I I by a knife 31. As the splice passes throughthe press the band of glue it dries and increases the strength of thesplice. The effect of the heating drums is to accelerate the drying ofthe glue thereby offsetting the weakening effect of the heat on thenon-drying glue. Thus the strength of the splice is not onlymaintained'but is actually increased as it passes through the press.

After the splice has been made, the reel It may be rotated to bring thespare roll I: to splicing position and the fresh roll ii to runningposition. The exhausted stub ll may be removed and replaced with anotherspare roll.

While the free end of the fresh roll isshown as cut to the form of aninverted W, it will be obvious that other forms may be used. It willalso be obvious that the drying type of glue may be applied in otherforms, for instance, in a single spot, or, in a number of separatespots, or, along a line paralleling the axis of the roll. Thus, while itis highly desirable, if not essential, that the non-drying glue beapplied along the very margin of the free end of the fresh web so as tonot leave any loose flaps which might catch and tear the splice apart,the drying type of glue whose main purpose is to maintain the spliceafter it has been made, need not necessarily be applied immediatelyadjacent the band of nondrying glue. It will be understood, therefore,that the showing in the drawing is merely that ofa preferred embodimentand is not to be construed as limitative of my invention.

I claim:

1. The method of effecting a firm-splice of a fresh web to a runningweb, which consists in introducing between the webs an area of nondryingglue and a separate area of wet glue of the drying type, and thereafterpressing the webs together to cause adhesion of one web to the other bythe non-drying glue and contact of the webs with each other over thearea of wet glue.

2. The method of effecting a firm splice of a fresh web to a runningweb, which consists in introducing between the webs an area of nondryingglue and a separate area displaced there from of wet glue of the dryingtype, pressing the webs together to cause adhesion of one web to theother, and drying the glue of the drying type.

3. The method of effecting a firm splice of a fresh web to a runningweb, which consists in introducing between the web's an area ofnondrying glue and a separate area of wet glue of the drying type,pressing the webs together to cause adhesion of one web to the other,and heating the splice to dry the glue of the drying type.

4. The method of preparing a fresh web roll for quick splicing to arunning web, which consists in cutting the free end of the fresh web toform a point, temporarily attaching said point to the body of the roll,applying highly adhesive non-drying glue to the fresh web along the endmargin thereof, and applying additional wet glue to the fresh web nearsaid end margin, said additional. glue being of'a drying type, theadhesive strength of the non-drying glue being sufficient to part theend of the fresh web from its temporary attachment to the web roll whensaid end is pressed into engagement with the running web.

5. The method of effecting a firm splice of'a web from a fresh roll to arunning web from an expiring roll, which consists in temporarilysecuring the free end of the fresh web to the body of the fresh roll,applying highly adhesive nondrying glue to the fresh web along the endmargin thereof, applying additional wet glue to the fresh web adjacentthe non-drying glue, said additional glue being of the drying type,rotating the fresh roll to a surface speed substantially equal to thatof the running web, pressing the running web against the rotating freshroll while said additional glue is still wet to cause adhesion of thewebs to eachother, and thereafter severing the running web from theexpiring roll.

6. The method of effecting a quick firm splice of a web from a freshroll to a running web from an expiring roll, which consists in cuttingthe end of the fresh web to form a point, temporarily securing saidpoint to the body of the fresh roll, applying a band of highly adhesivenondrying glue to the fresh web along the end margin thereof and oversaid point, applying an additional band of wet glue to the fresh webadjacent and parallel to the band of non-drying glue, said additionalglue being of the drying type, rotating the fresh roll to a surfacespeed substantially equal to that of the running web, pressing therunning web againstthe fresh r011 while the additional glue is still wetto cause adhesion of the webs to each other, severing the running webfrom the expiring roll. and drying said additional glue.

7. The method of effecting a firm splice of a web from a fresh roll to arunning web from an expiring roll, which consists in temporarilysecuring the free end of the freshweb to the body of the fresh roll,applying highly adhesive nondrying glue to the fresh web along the endmargin thereof, applying additional wet glue to the fresh web adjacentthe non-drying glue, said additional glue being of the drying type,rotating the fresh roll to a surface speed substantially equal to thatof the running web, pressing the running web against the fresh rollwhile the additional glue is still wet to cause adhesion of the webs toeach other, severing the running web from the expiring roll, and heatingthe splice thus made and thereby expediting the drying of saidadditional glue.

8. The method of eflecting a firm splice of a fresh web to a runningweb, which consists in introducing between the webs two separate areasof glue, the two areas being characterized by the fact that one is of anon-drying type of glue to effect the initial splice, and the second isa wet glue of a drying type for pulling the splice through a web-usingmachine, pressing the webs together to cause adhesion of one web to theother and drying the last mentioned gliiei PAUL L. TOLLISON.

